degrees. better thursday and friday. tonight, you should be ashamed. that powerful message as jon stewart unloads, lashing out and slamming congress in an emotional fight to take care of 9/11 first responders many of them sick and dying. >> they did their jobs with courage, grace, tenacity. 18 years later, do yours >> one first responder testifying the day before his 69th chemo treatment and these heroes will run out of money. david ortiz is now hospitalized in boston tonight the deaths of two more american tourists in the

dominican republic coming to light, bringing the total to six over the last year what is going on nbc news learning new details of the final moment of that helicopter before it crashed at the top of a new york city skyscraper. what happened? president trump and joe biden, face off. holding events in iowa could falling asleep with the tv on make you gain weight tonight, a wake-up call from doctors about that, and what all those devices in bed could be doing to your waistline. >> announcer: this is "nbc nightly news" with lester holt good evening welcome to our viewers in the west the pain and emotions of 9/11 poured out in a congressional hearing today. a cancer-stricken first responder pleaded to keep the fund of 9/11 alive

workers sicken from their ground zero exposures standing with victims today, as he often has, comedian jon stewart, who blasted congress for its response so far. nbc's blayne alexander reports >> reporter: on capitol hill, face of 9/11, family members, first responders and fighting alongside them, long-time ally, jon stewart. >> they responded in five seconds. they did their jobs with courage and grace, tenacity, humility 18 years later, do yours >> reporter: the push to extend the victim compensation fund, created to help those sufferin from 9/11 related illnesses and their families, but the fund is rung out of money, already paying out more than $5 billion

with 21,000 claims still outstanding. >> how is it fair that i was duly compensated but others that are now sick and dying from their exposure will not be >> reporter: former detective luis alvarez was there his cancer has spread throughout his body now he's fighting for those still waiting for help >> you made me come down here the day before my 69th round of chemo. and i am going to make sure that you never forget to take car of the 9/11 first responders >> reporter: stewart pointing to dozens of empty committee chairs. >> it's an embarrassment to the country and it's a stain on this institution. >> reporter: accusing lawmakers of not making this a priority. >> your indifference costs these men and women their most valuable commodity time >> blayne is with us right now a lot of emotion in that room

today. >> yeah. >> can you tell us when there may be movement with this? >> lester, lawmakers are hoping to advance this out of the committee sometimes tomorrow if this bill passes, it would fund payments until the year 2090 one other thing of all the empty chairs today, that room was set up for a full committee which is why there were so many empty seats. >> blayne alexander, welcome thank you. tonight, late word about baseball david ortiz's condition, recovering after a second surgery in boston after that brazen attack in the dominican republic we also have learned about two more american deaths on the island, raising more questions about health and safety there. we are in the dominican republic, first to nbc's ron mott in boston >> reporter: david ortiz is back in his adopted hometown after being shot in the dominican republic the former red sox star recovering from a second surgery, even taking a few steps. his wife, tiffany, saying he is

awake and resting comfortably, thanking everyone for the outpouring of support and love 14-year-old son deangelo is also rooting for his dad. tweeting i love you pops, endlessly. one person was take nooen custody at the scene, while authorities search for another, determined to find those responsible and put them at the mercy of justice >> our beloved big papi. >> reporter: questions of why abound big papi honored at fenway park last night by the city that considers him family >> a lot of people behind him wishing him well >> reporter: ron mott, nbc news, boston >> reporter: this is morgan chesky in punta cana tonight, there is a growin mystery contrasting a shadow over the island pristine beauty. six americans have died at four hotels across the dominican republic three in the last month alone. david harrison got sick last month at the hard rock where he got sick and died suddenly >> when you vacation as a family, you want to come home as a family >> reporter: his wife thought he

died of a heart attack, but after hearing of the recent deaths on the island, began to wonder >> something is not right in the dominican republic as all these people are dying >> reporter: concerns and tourism on the island is taking a hit. flights to the dr have dropped by more than 12% on kayak.com last week. but for those who are there -- >> i feel completely safe here >> reporter: totally >> yes >> you have a little bit of iffyness in the back of your mind but that's anywhere >> reporter: hotels involved say their thoughts are with the families and are monitoring the facts as they unfold toxicology results for the american victims, whose death have not been connected. a travel advisory put in place back in april does remain in effect travel experts say if you do come here, don't go out alone and if you have any medical concerns, consult a doctor before leaving lester >> morgan chesky, thank you.

here in new york, investigators are looking into that helicopter crash. the pilot was killed, and now investigators are looking into whether he became disoriented. our tom costello is at the scene. >> reporter: investigators sorting through the charred remains. questions tonight why tim mccormack chose to fly in bad weather when he was not approved to fly in low visibility conditions after waiting two hours for the weather to clear, investigators say mccormack decided to lift off. the helicopter flying erratically. >> he flew all around here, and he flew north towards the heliport >> reporter: the path shows unusual loops and turns. doug brazey. doug, can you characterize what, if any, conversations the pilot had with the air traffic controllers? >> as far as we know, the pilot was not in communication with

atc. >> reporter: investigators say mccormack may have radio ed to the heliport >> the number one killer is weather conditions if you are not trained for that and not expected, that can be deadly >> reporter: in a statement, mccormack's brother says, my brother was a professional and he saved many lives. there was no black box on board the chopper but investigators hope the memory chips in the flight control system survive the crash and may provide clues to what happened lester >> tom costello, thank you, tom. now a preview of what may be a wild campaign to come. president trump and former vice president joe biden both in iowa tonight, holding dual events and unlyric their most scathing attacks yet. here is kristen welker >> reporter: a possible preview of the general election.

>> he says let's make america great again. let's make america america again. >> sleepy joe, he's a sleepy guy. >> reporter: former vice president joe biden courting voters, looking past his 20 democratic opponents and setting his sights squarely on the current commander in chief. >> i believe that the president is literally an existential threat to america. >> reporter: today, the president taking shots just before leaving on his own trip to iowa, a state he won in 2016. >> when a man has to mention my name 76 times in his speech, that means he's in trouble >> reporter: are you elevating joe biden by continually attacking him? >> no. i would rather run against biden than anybody i think he's the weakest mentally i like running against people that are weak mentally >> reporter: sources close to the white house say the president is concerned about biden.

the democratic front-runner accused the president of hurting farmers. >> it's easy to be tough when somebody else absorbs the pain. >> reporter: today the president defended his showdown with mexico, holding up a piece of paper, saying it's part of an agreement for mexico stemming the migrants >> this is one page, without the tariffs, we would have nothing >> reporter: president trump will kickoff his reelection campaign in florida next week. lester >> kristen welker at the white house. thanks president trump is weighing in on that half brother of kim jong-un was a secret cia informant. kim jong-nam was murdered by poison at the airport. let's get to our andrea mitchell >> reporter: reports of kim jong-un's older half brother, kim jong-nam was working for the cia, possibly why he was assassinated in a malaysia airport in 2017 by two women,

smearing his face with lethal nerve gas. u.s. officials have blamed north korea, which denies it the cia also in a new book by anna fifield >> he would meet american intelligence operatives in various places and provide them information about the system and he was paid very handsomely for this information >> reporter: the cia would not confirm the link the president offered this comment. >> i saw the information about the cia with respect to his brother or half-brother. i would tell him that would not happen under my as you miuspice' for sure >> reporter: for the first time since the failed hanoi summit, kim jong-un sent president trump a letter yesterday downplaying concerns about missile tests. >> he kept his words there is no large long-range missiles going up. the only thing he set up were short terms and short range. >> reporter: the president not ruling out another summit.

andrea mitchell, nbc news. new developments in the case of connecticut missing mother of five her estranged husband was free on bond as prosecutors revealed new dramatic blood and evidence in court with more on that, here is kathy park. >> reporter: tonight, fotis dulos, the estranged husband of the missing connecticut mother, walking free on $500,000 bail. hours before, dulos appeared in court where investigators revealed new evidence found in the home of jennifer dulos >> the lab was able to confirm the defendant's dna was found in a mixture on the faucet inside of jennifer's kitchen. >> mr. dulos would have had no motive >> reporter: with his high-profile lawyer by his side, dulos pled not guilty to charges of evidence tampering. >> mr. dulos have been tried and

convicted in the court of public opinion for a crime he's not yet been charged with. >> reporter: his girlfriend, michelle troconis, arriving moments earlier, pleading not guilty to evidence of tampering. police received more than 300 tips and dedicated a new website to find jennifer dulos >> we don't know where jennifer is we don't think the state knows where jennifer is. >> reporter: as the sfrat search now enters its third week. kathy park, nbc news with weeks away to the first debate here on nbc, we turn now to "my big idea," our series giving democrats running for president a chance to share an idea that they believe separates them from the pack here is kamala harris' big idea. >> what's your big idea? >> my big idea is to raise teacher pay. >> reporter: just the second african-american woman and first south asian american elected to the u.s. senate. >> just last week, i got an email from a middle school

teacher, mrs. wayne. >> reporter: we caught up with harris in west colombia, south carolina she was in town to talk with and about teachers >> there are two groups of people who are raising our children, parents with assistance of grandparents and aunts and uncles, and our teachers, and we are not paying them their value. >> reporter: harris says recent teacher demonstrations across the country is proof that a plan like hers is needed. teachers make 11% less than other professionals. she wants to give them a $13,500 raise. what's the price tag >> $13.15 billion over the course of ten years. we will pay for it by increasing the state tax. >> reporter: the teachers union, massive, millions of people. let's give them $13,000 each is this just a play to that crowd? >> absolutely not. i will tell you, my entire career, and frankly my entire life, i've been focused on education. my first grade teacher, mrs.

frances wilson, god rest her soul, attended my law school graduation we are a society that pretends to care about education, but not so much the education of other people's children. >> reporter: giving teachers a raise. that's kamala harris' big idea harry smith, nbc news, west columbia, south carolina >> more when kristin gillibrand talks about her big idea i will be among the moderator on that first debate along with savannah guthrie and rachel maddow that's june 26th and 27th on nbc and msnbc, and telemundo the popular service to transfer money how scammers use this to scam your accounts in seconds then, is your bedtime ritual making you gain weight stay with us

next our nbc news investigation into a popular banking service. so many use it to transfer money fast, but experts warn scammers can use it to hack your account. vickie nguyen on how to protect your money >> reporter: if you have mobile banking, odds are you have zelle, a program built into many of the most popular banking apps >> zelle is an easy way to send and receive money to friends and family >> reporter: here is how it works. the app is linked to your bank account. all you need to send money is someone's email address or phone number just press "send," the cash is transferred. this happens in minutes and not days >> reporter: nbc news found people across the country who says hackers used zelle to drain money from their accounts. i had $3,000 pulled out of my account. >> i had $4,700. >> $6,400. >> we lost $1,500 total. >> reporter: she says thieves called from an 800 number and

tricked her into sharing personal bank information. >> they wanted me to verify my identity through a text code and that six numbers was what they needed to access my account. >> reporter: cyber security expert bob sullivan says what makes zelle so fast and convenient is also what makes it so alluring to criminals >> the quicker the transaction is, the quicker a criminal can steal. >> reporter: zelle declined being interviewed but say they and their banking partners apply layers of protection and authentication, and send limits and real-time fraud alerts with all digital payment technologies that provide consumers with greater transactions federal laws protect you from this but even so this woman says she had to push to get her money back >> it is really important for everyone to know they're

vulnerable >> we welcome vickie now how do you make sure it does not happen to you? >> remember banks will never call you to ask for any personal information like a password or a text code. never give it out to anyone. the other thing is set up those alerts on your phone so that any time money is moved from your account, you will get a notification >> thank you very much coming up, the bedtime habit that may be causing you to add on a few pounds.

we are back with the startling health headline. could falling asleep with the tv on be the reason you gain weight >> reporter: for so many of us, it's the nightly routine, television as we drift off to sleep, the modern-day nightlight that may be the reason some pack on the pounds. according to a new study, women who slept with the television or light on gained 11 pounds or more, compared to those who slept in the dark. researchers at the national institutes for health suggesting artificial light may disrupt sleep enough to change levels of

appetite-controlling hormones. using smart devices as you nod off could increase obesity by 33%. >> we're facing an obesity epidemic and things like this, that we have control over are an easy therapeutic target. >> reporter: researchers suggest artificial light throws off your body clock sleep in a cool, dark room before you unplug, at least wait until the broadcast is over. miguel almageur. >> thank you for watching everyone >> i would like to think nobody falls asleep on this broadcast the women's historic win today and their battle off the field

in tonight's "inspiring america," world cup fever. the u.s. women's team kicking things off with the biggest win in tournament history, while fighting another battle off the field. here's kelly cobiella. >> reporter: tonight a stellar win on the world stage team usa trouncing thailand in their world cup opener thousands of fans followed them here in france hoping to see their heroes score another trophy who's your favorite player >> alex morgan >> carli lloyd >> reporter: they're global superstars and role models >> i want to be on the women's team when i'm older. >> yeah, me, too. >> reporter: three world cup trophies and still fighting off the field to be paid just as much as the men. equal compensation, like norway and the netherlands are promising. >> women, over the years, they've always played a better ga

game. >> reporter: a billion people around the world are expected to watch this women's world cup who's going to win it all? >> oh, my god. >> is that even a question >> dumb question usa! >> reporter: tonight they're one game closer. kelly koeb right now at 6:00, a lawsuit filed against san francisco police department. the officers who say they were discriminated against because they're white. also trouble on the tracks. how b.a.r.t. is dealing with equipment that's overheating in the sweltering heat. triple digits for some of us, but the relief is on the way. we'll tell you when that cool down finally begins. the news at 6:00 starts right now. good evening, and thanks for joining us, i'm jessica aguirre. >> i'm raj mathai along with

jeff ranieri. are we in for a hot summer when this finally starts? and short term, when does the cool down begin? >> as we head through the next couple months we could see the surges of heat keep returning across the bay area. and right now the main reason why it's been so hard for us to cool down across the bay area, at least the past 24 hours is the lack of the ocean breeze. it was so, so slow to start today. but we are beginning to see some differences. i'll get to that in a second. but 105 in concord. san francisco ranging from 83-97 degree the. notice the difference right now. this is just so nice to see. we've gotten a little bit of the fog building at the coastline. san francisco now dropping to 79 degrees. that means little for you back here in the inland valleys where we're still in the upper 90s and low 100s, but it's a sign of some changes. we all need some hope. here's another